Cloudo stakes claim for the web desktop

 

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By Simon Aughton

Posted on 20 Feb 2008 at 11:40

Applications are slowly moving from the desktop to the web, so why not operating systems?

That is the thinking behind a number of projects that are working towards providing a true desktop environment in a web browser.

The latest outfit to unveil such an offering is Swedish startup Cloudo, which has begun inviting developers to test an alpha version of its web operating system.

Cloudo is essentially a virtual computer that runs in the web browser, with built in social networking functionality to allow users to share documents, folders, calendars and workspaces with other users.

While it is equipped with a set of core applications, it also includes a set of tools allowing developers to build their own.

Ted Persson, co-founder of the Cloudo Company, says that taking operating systems online is the next logical step.

"The computers we use today are based on a set of ideas and concepts that were developed in the late 70's, they haven't evolved to meet the demands of today's mobile lifestyle and the possibilities the Internet offers," says Persson.

"Among 20 year-olds more than 95% of the time by the computer is spent online. Cloudo is the natural next step, taking the full desktop online."

Cloudo is one of around 10 different web OS projects. Absent from that list is Google, though many expect the leading developer of web applications to enter the market.

The search company has already staked its claim for the mobile space with its Android platform; it may one day make public the Goobuntu variant on Linux that it uses internally.